US20120112923A1 - Back looking warning assembly and a method for determining the presence of atangible entity in close proximity to the back of an individual - Google Patents

Abstract

A portable assembly10 which may be selectively worn on the body of a user14 and which detects the presence of a tangible entity80 which is located behind or at any other location or portions of the user14. Multiple assemblies10 may be utilized. The assembly may include a message generation portion500 and a location portion510.

Description

GENERAL BACKGROUND
• 1. Field Of The Invention
• The present invention generally relates to a back looking warning assembly and to a method for determining the presence of a tangible entity in close proximity to the back (or other portion) of an individual and more particularly, to an assembly and to a method for allowing a walker, hiker, and/or runner (or any individual) to be warned when a person, animal, or other tangible entity approaches the back (or other portion) of the user, thereby preventing or reducing the likelihood of an undesired surprise.
• 2. Background of the Invention
• People have become much more health conscious and accordingly many people enjoy running, jogging, hiking, running, or otherwise moving in order to exercise and improve their respective overall health. While these activities are desirable, they are not without risk.
• That is, unfortunately in this society many of these exercisers (and other individuals) are accosted by people who “sneak up” from behind these individuals and rob them, injure them, and/or kidnap them. This is particularly true when one considers that many of these exercisers need to run or otherwise move in great distances in order to achieve their respective and desired level of activity. This means that many of these individuals, at least part of the time, traverse rather sparsely populated and somewhat heavily forested or remote areas, thereby increasing the probability that someone may be able to “sneak up from behind them” and accost them without being noticed and without the availability of help or assistance for the exerciser. Moreover, many of these exercisers purposefully traverse a park or other forested and sparsely populated environment in order to “enjoy the scenery”, thereby further increasing the probability of being accosted, without warning. Further, many individuals perform these activities at dusk or in the early morning due to scheduling constraints and/or due to rather hot/humid weather occurring during the remainder of the day. This practice further and unfortunately increases the probability of the occurrence of such an undesirable occurrence. Further, many individuals employ a head phone arrangement, while running or otherwise exercising, thereby greatly reducing their respective ability to hear an individual (or other tangible entity) sneaking up from behind them. Further, it should be appreciated that both individuals as well as animals (e.g., bears) may sneak up from behind an exerciser and, without warning, accost them. Other tangible entities, such as cars or trucks, may similarly cause damage to an individual without warning.
• There is therefore a need for a system and a method which warns an individual of the presence of a potentially threatening tangible entity (e.g., such as an individual or animal or vehicle) behind them or otherwise in close proximity to them and the present inventions provide such a system and a method.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
• It is a first non-limiting object of the present invention to provide a method and an assembly which warns an individual of the presence of a potentially threatening tangible entity.
• It is a second non-limiting object of the present invention to provide an assembly which provides a warning to an individual of the presence of a potentially threatening tangible entity which is disposed behind the individual.
• It is a third non-limiting object of the present invention to provide a method which provides a warning to an individual of the presence of a potentially threatening tangible entity which is disposed behind (or proximate to another portion) the individual.
• According to a first non-limiting aspect of the present invention, a backward looking warning assembly is provided.
• According to a second non-limiting aspect of the present invention, a warning assembly is provided and includes a belt: and a sensor which is operatively deployed upon the belt and which generates a signal and which, by use of the generated signal, determines the presence of an individual in close proximity to the sensor.
• According to a third non-limiting aspect of the present invention, a method for determining the presence of a tangible entity in close proximity to the back of an individual who is moving in a first direction is provided. Particularly, the method includes the steps of providing a sensor which generates an electrical signal; placing the sensor upon the body of the individual effective to allow the signal to be generated in a second direction which is opposite to the first direction and which impinges upon the tangible entity; and using the generated signal to determine the presence of the tangible entity.
• According to a fourth non-limiting aspect of the present invention, a warning assembly is provided having a first portion which senses the presence of an entity and a second portion which provides a message to a remote location.
• According to a fifth non-limiting aspect of the present invention a warming assembly is provided having a portion which senses the presence of an entity and a second portion which allows the location of the warning assembly to be quickly determined.
• According to a sixth non-limiting aspect of the present invention a portable warning assembly is provided and comprises a first portion which senses the presence of a tangible entity; a second portion which automatically generates a message upon the sensed presence of the tangible entity; and a portion which allows the location of the assembly to be determined when the tangible entity is sensed.
• According to a seventh non-limiting aspect of the present invention a warning assembly is provided and comprises a controller assembly operating under stored program control; a memory portion which is coupled to the controller assembly and which includes a message and a cellular telephone number; a modem assembly which is coupled to the controller assembly; a global positioning portion which receives a remote signal and which transmits, upon receipt of the signal, a certain location; and a signal generator which is coupled to the controller assembly and which senses the presence of a tangible entity and which communicates the sensed presence of the tangible entity to the controller assembly, whereby the controller assembly retrieves the message and the telephone number and which activates the modem effective to cause the message to be sent to a telephone having the telephone number and wherein the controller assembly further activates the global positioning portion effective to allow the location of the global positioning portion to be identified.
• According to an eighth non-limiting aspect of the present invention a method for determining the location of assets is provided and includes the steps of placing a global positioning locator upon each asset; displaying a map of the environment in which the assets are deployed; remotely interrogating each of the respective global positioning locators, effective to obtain the respective location of each asset; and displaying upon the map, the respective locations of each of the assets.
• These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present inventions will become apparent from a reading of the detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention, including the subjoined claims, and by reference to the following drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
• FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an individual wearing the assembly of the preferred embodiment of the invention being followed by a potentially threatening individual.
• FIG. 2 is a front view of a belt incorporating the assembly which is shown inFIG. 1.
• FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the assembly which is shown inFIGS. 1 and 2.
• FIG. 4 is a side view of a belt which is made in accordance with the teachings of an alternate embodiment of the invention.
• FIG. 5 is a right perspective view of an individual wearing the belt ofFIG. 4.
• FIG. 6 is a left perspective view of the individual shown inFIG. 5.
• FIG. 7 are various signal signatures associates with the assembly of the invention.
• FIG. 8 is a block diagram of alternate embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION
• Referring now toFIGS. 1-6, there is shown a backward lookingwarning assembly10 which is made in accordance with the teachings of the preferred embodiment of the inventions.
• Particularly,assembly10 is selectively and removably deployed upon thebody12 of an individual14 (e.g., such as a runner, walker, jogger, hiker, or someone otherwise in motion). Typically, in one non-limiting embodiment theassembly10 is selectively and removably deployed upon thelower back16 of theuser14 and is lightweight, easily removable, and portable.
• That is, in one non-limiting embodiment, theassembly10 is fixedly attached (e.g., by the use of pins18-24 which respectively penetrate through preformed holes in thecasing400 and attach casing400 (and assembly10) to theoutside surface32 of abelt34. Other types of belts may be utilized. Moreover, thebelt34, in one non-limiting embodiment of the invention, is of the type having a plurality ofopenings40,42,44 on afirst end46 and a selectivelymovable clasp28 on the second opposedend50. Theclasp28 has a selectivelymovable projection48. Thebelt34 may be deployed around the lower back or waist16 of theuser14 such that theinside belt surface62 lies directly upon the lower back orwaist16 of theuser14. Theprojection48 is then selectively and removably inserted into one of the openings40-44 to fixedly secure thebelt34 upon the lower waist orback16. Alternatively thebelt34 may be entirely constructed of elastic (selectively stretchable and pliable) type material, thereby obviating the need for without theclasp48 and the openings40-44, and this elastic embodiment (such as an elastic band) may be readily and removably deployed upon the head or waist of theuser14.
• Theassembly10 which may comprise one or more circuit boards which are operatively placed within the casing400 (by fasteners)) is adapted to generate asignal70, emanating in adirection72 which is generally opposite to the general orrelative direction74 in which theuser14 is moving (e.g., thesignal70 moves away from the lower back orwaist16 of the user14). Should a tangible entity80 (e.g., a individual, animal, or inanimate object, such as a vehicle) approach theuser14 from behind the user's back or lower waist60, the generatedsignal70 impinges upon thetangible entity80 and causes areflected signal79 to be transmitted to theassembly10 along the general direction74.Once theassembly10 receives thereflected signal79, an audio or visual or some other type of sensory alarm may be activated thereby notifying theuser14 of the presence of thetangible entity80 behind theuser14 and allowing theuser14 to take some sort of countermeasure (e.g., begin to run away from the tangible entity80). Alternatively or additionally to the audio and visual alarm, theassembly10 may provide a vibrating output signal.
• To understand the operation of theassembly10, reference is now had toFIG. 3. As shown, theassembly10, in one non-limiting embodiment, includes acontroller assembly100 which is operable under stored program control and which may comprise, in one non-limiting embodiment, a “dual-core” type of processor which is available from the Intel® Corporation. Theassembly10 further includes amemory assembly102 which is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 by thebus104 and which contains the programming code necessary to define the operation of theassembly10 and of thecontroller100 and which further includes information which may be selectively written into and read from thememory assembly102 by thecontroller assembly100. Thecontroller assembly100 and thememory assembly102 communicate by the use of thebus104.
• Theassembly10 further includes a source ofelectrical energy110 which is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 by thebus112 and which provides operative electrical energy to thecontroller assembly100 and to other portions of theassembly10, through thecontroller assembly100. In one non-limiting embodiment of the invention, thesource110 comprises a removable battery. Alternatively thesource100 may comprise a solar cell or substantially any other type of power source.
• Theassembly10 further includes anindicator portion130 which is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 by use of thebus132 and which, in one non-limiting embodiment, comprises a selectively energizable light and/or an audible alarm generator. Theportion130 receives energy from theprovider110 through thecontroller assembly100 when thesignal79 is received by the assembly10 (or when asignal79 having a certain amplitude or strength is received) and upon receipt of the energy, theportion130 provides a visual and/or audio and/or other type of sensory signal which alerts theuser14 to the undesired presence of thetangible entity80. Theassembly10 may also include avibrator150 which is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 by the use of thebus152 and which receives electrical energy from thesource110 through thecontroller assembly100 upon receipt of the signal79 (or when asignal79 having a certain amplitude or strength is received) by theassembly10. In this manner, thevibrator150 begins to vibrate and thereby notifies theuser14 of the undesired presence of thetangible entity80 behind theuser14. Thevibrator150 may replace all or some of theportion130 and provides a tactile indication of the sensed presence of thetangible entity80. Thevibrator150 may also be used in combination with theindicator130.
• Theassembly10 includes a transmitter andreceiver portion200 which is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 by thebus202, and which receives operating energy from theprovider110 and thecontroller assembly100, throughbusses112,202. Theportion200, upon a command from thecontroller assembly100, generates thesignal70 and receives thesignal79. The receivedsignal79 is then communicated to thecontroller assembly100 by use of thebus202 and is recognized by thecontroller assembly100 as having a certain amplitude or strength. It should be appreciated that a programmable signal strength factor may be deployed within thememory102 and which is selectively readable by thecontroller assembly100. This factor determines the strength or the amplitude of thesignal79 which is necessary for thecontroller assembly100 to activate or selectively energize thevibrator150 and/orindicator130, by selectively allowing electrical energy to be respectively communicated to thesecomponents150 and/or130. For example, when the amplitude of thesignal79 is relatively high then thetangible entity80 is relatively close to theuser14, andportions130 and/or150 are only activated in one non-limiting embodiment, when this condition occurs, thereby reducing false alarms or alarms due to tangible entities which are relatively far from theuser14.
• This amplitude modification may be accomplished by a command which is generated to thecontroller assembly100 through an input/output portion300 which may form a portion of theassembly10 and which is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 through the use ofbus301. Thus, theuser14 may, be the use ofportion300 which may be selectively coupled to a computer, select or specify the amplitude of thesignal79 which is necessary to causeportions130 and/or150 to be selectively energized. The communicated amplitude is stored withinmemory102 and rend y theassembly100 when theassembly100 receives asignal79. Alternatively, each and every time asignal79 is received,assembly100 activatesportions130 and/or150.
• In one non-limiting embodiment of the invention,portion200 may comprise an infrared or microwave alarm device or a programmable motion sensor such as those provided by the Guard Dog corporation and found, for example at www.guarddog.net.Portion200 may comprise an acoustic sensor or any of the items discussed under the heading “motion detection” at the website www.wikipedia.org, or found on the website www.homesecuritystore.com, all of which is fully incorporated herein by reference.
• Further, in various other non-limiting embodiments of the invention, thebelt34 may have at least onepocket304 into which one or more items may be placed. Thepocket304 may have a selectivelyclosable flap305 which has a firstVelcro® portion307 which cooperates with a secondVelcro® portion309 to allowflap305 to selectively close (prevent access to) and open (allow access in) thepocket304. In yet another non-limiting embodiment, theassembly10 may include a light assembly350 (such as, by way of example and without limitation, a light emitting diode assembly) which is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 by thebus351 and which is operatively deployed (by the use of fasteners, such as pins) upon thesurface32 and which provides illumination light around and upon thesurface34 when a selectivelydepressible switch360, which is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 bybus362 and which may form a portion of theassembly10, is depressed, thereby providing light for theuser14.Switch360 may be housed within thehousing400 which contains the various components ofassembly10. It should be appreciated that thebelt34 may be worn so that theassembly10 is provided upon different positions along the waist of theuser14, thereby providing an indication of the presence of a tangible entity at respectively unique positions with respect to theuser14.
• In yet another non-limiting embodiment, shown best inFIGS. 4-6,multiple assemblies10 may be deployed upon thebelt34 such that when the modifiedbelt34 is worn by theuser412 an assembly is deployed upon the right hip414, theleft hip416, and the back418 of theuser412. Eachassembly10 respectively provides an indication of a tangible entity coming toward theuser412 from a respectively unique direction.
• It is to be understood that the present inventions are not limited to the exact embodiment described above, but that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and the scope of the inventions as they are further delineated in the following claims. It should be appreciated that the foregoing embodiments provide a portable and relatively lightweight strategy to protect an individual from the dangers emanating from tangible entities approaching the user in a multitude of diverse directions. Importantly, theassembly10 is deployed upon an item, such as abelt34, may be readily worn (deployed upon) an individual and as such is portable. That is, theassembly10 “goes where the individual wherever and whenever the individual decides to move or whenever the individual resides (even when the individual is at rest). Thus, by having theassembly10 deployed upon the individual the individual is “automatically” protected without the need to do more except to wear thebelt34 or whatever other article theassembly10 is deployed upon. Theassembly10, includingcasing400, may be removed from thebelt34 and just fastened or affixed to theuser14 by a strap, clip, or other fastener.
• In yet another non-limiting embodiment of the invention, theassembly10 includes an SMS or “short message service” assembly500 which is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 by use of thebus502. In a non-limiting embodiment, the assembly500 comprises a Quad Band GSM and GPRS Modem assembly (such as the WISM 2018 chip) and in this embodiment a previously configured text type cell phone or textual “short message”504 is created and stored within thememory102. The stored message is stored in combination with a targeted cellular telephone number505. Upon the selective activation of theswitch360, the stored and previously configuredmessage504 is sent to the associated, previously stored, and previously designated cellular telephone. That is, theinformation504,505 is accessed by thecontroller assembly100 and then transmitted to the assembly500 by use of thebus502. Thecontroller assembly100 may selectively activate the assembly500 by allowing electrical power emanating from thepower supply110 to be communicated to the assembly500. The assembly500 then sends themessage504 to the identified member505.Some non-limiting examples of themessage504 include “help”, although themessage504 could comprise any desired message of a “short length”. Moreover, thecontroller assembly100 could, in yet another non-limiting embodiment, cause themessage504 to be automatically generated or “activated” when thevibrator150 and/orindicator130 is activated, or at any other time which is specified within thememory102. In this manner, the user of theassembly10 may send a message to a loved one or a friend or some other responsible party that a certain event has happened and some action may be required. The assembly500 may be regarded as to “message generation” portion of theassembly10 and selectively generates a message to a remotely located cellular telephone (e.g., “remote” from the assembly10).
• In yet a further non-limiting embodiment of the invention, theassembly10 includes a real time GPS (Global Positioning System)tracker510, such as that which is known as the “Spark Nano 2.0” which is offered by Brick House Security (www.BrickHouseSecurity.com). Thetracker510 is coupled to thecontroller assembly100 by the bus515 and allows someone, with access to the Internet to track “real time” location ofassembly10 and user/wearer ofassembly10. Electrical power is sourced to theassembly510 by thecontroller assembly100, by use of thepower supply110 and busses112 and515. In one non-limiting embodiment, electrical power is not supplied to theassembly510 until thecontroller assembly100 senses or determines that an alarm event has occurred or is occurring and/or that themessage504 has been transmitted from theassembly10. Thus, in one non-limiting embodiment, a previously storedmessage504 is sent to a previously designated cell phone and electrical power is selectively sourced to the assembly510 (e.g., theassembly510 is “activated”) so that the recipient of themessage504, by use of the Internet, may determine the location of the user of theassembly10 and call someone for help for the user or take some other action. Of course, in yet another non-limiting embodiment, electrical power may be continually sourced to theassembly510, thereby allowing someone to track, in “real time”, the location of the user of theassembly10. Portions500 (the message generation portion) and510 (the location determination portion) may be used independently of each other, alternatively used, or concurrently used, depending upon the needs of the user of theassembly10 and depending upon the operating specifications which are stored within thememory102 and accessed by thecontroller assembly100. In one non-limiting embodiment, theportion510 sends the location information after receiving a query or an interrogation signal, although theportion510 could be configured to send the location information as soon as theportion510 is selectively activated.
• In yet another non-limiting embodiment of the invention, a digital signalprocessing type filter520 is included and contained within thememory portion102 and accessible and useable by the controller assembly100 (by the use of bus104). Thisfilter520 is used to examine each of thesignals79 which are received by the assembly10 (and ultimately the controller assembly100). That is, as is best perhaps shown inFIG. 7, the shape (e.g., highest amplitude742,duration744, and/or change in amplitude/frequency over a certain time frame746) of a receivedsignal79 is different for different types of tangible entities and tangible entities of the same type have approximately similar types of signal shapes.
• For example, “signal1” ofFIG. 7 may correspond to that of animal while “signal2” ofFIG. 7 may correspond to a vehicle. “Signal3” ofFIG. 7 may correspond to a human being. The signals ofFIG. 7 are meant to represent acoustic type signals, although the analysis could equally be made for other types of signals.
• Thus, thefilter520 may be used to determine the type ofsignal79 that was or is being received and to selectively ignore cars or anything else but a human being or an animal. Alternatively, thefilter520 could be used to ignore whatever was desired and havecontroller assembly10 provide an alarm type signal only when a certain type of signal (such as that associated with an animal or human being) was received (e.g., the “alarm type” signal may cause thevibrator150 to be activated and/or thelight assembly350 and/orindicator130 to be activated and/or to have theassembly510 be activated and/or to have aSMS type message504 generated). Other features of the receivedsignal79 may be used by thefilter520 to determine the identity of the sensed tangible entity.
• In yet another non-limiting embodiment, (as is best perhaps shown inFIG. 8), one ormore computer assemblies900 may remotely and in real time interrogate a plurality ofusers902,903,905, each having arespective assembly10. That is, theassembly900, using the Internet, may automatically obtain the respective global positioning location of eachuser902,903,905 and depict the various respective positions on a screen ofdisplay912. The at least onecomputer assembly900 may in one non-limiting embodiment, comprise a Hewlett Packard® Pavilion® lap top computer (having a keyboard1000,display912, and processing portion1001), although other computers may be utilized. Thus, for example, if a plurality ofborder patrol agents902,903,905, each wearing arespective assembly10, are in a certain location (at a certain portion of the Arizona-Mexico border), theassembly900 could find and display, in real time, the respective locations of eachagent902,903,905, thereby allowing a control command post to track the location and spatial movement of thevarious agents902,903,905 (in “real time”) and dynamically update the respective locations. The assembly10 (or just the portion510) could also be placed on vehicles or any other asset, thereby making it relatively easy to track the location of their asset in “real time”. In yet another non-limiting embodiment, a map940 of the general location in whichassets902,903,905, to be tracked are deployed (e.g., at a certain desert location) may be stored within thecomputer900 and selectively displayed or placed on thescreen912. The respective asset locations may be placed on themap912 thereby making it even easier for the certain command post to track the assets by visually showing the “real time” movement of the agents/assets902,903,905 within the defined location/environment (i.e., within a square portion of the Arizona-Texas border having a length and a width of five miles).

Claims (3)

1) A portable warning assembly comprising a first portion which senses the presence of a tangible entity; a second portion which automatically generates a message upon the sensed presence of said tangible entity; and a portion which allows the location of said assembly having a location and to be determined when said tangible entity is sensed.

2) A warning assembly comprising a controller assembly operating under stored program control; a memory portion which is coupled to said controller assembly and which includes a message and a cellular telephone number; a modem assembly which is coupled to said controller assembly; a global positioning portion which selectively transmits, said location of said warning assembly; and a signal generator which is coupled to said controller and which senses the presence of a tangible entity and which communicates said sensed presence of said tangible entity to said controller assembly, whereby said controller assembly retrieves said message and said telephone number and which then activates said modem effective to cause said message to be sent to a telephone having said telephone number and wherein said controller assembly then further activates said global positioning portion effective to allow said global positioning to transmit said location of said warning assembly.

3) A method for determining the location of assets, said method comprising the steps of placing a global positioning locator upon each asset; obtaining and displaying a map of the environment in which said assets are deployed; remotely interrogating each of said respective global positioning locators, effective to obtain the respective location of each assets; and displaying upon said map, the respective locations of each of said assets.

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